From far away, the Viridian Forest was an unimpressive looking green smudge on the horizon, dwarfed by the buildings behind him and the mountains that led up into the plateau. It hardly looked as dangerous as the center nurse had made it sound. But as Brian got closer and the trees continued to grow larger and more distinct he realized that the forest was nothing like the trees around his hometown. These trees were old and massive, and they crowded together so tightly that he couldn't see much past them. Suddenly all those warnings about the forest being dangerous made sense, and he wondered why he'd ever entertained the idea of trying to get through on his own. There could be anything hiding in the shadows that those trees cast, watching him...

Brian breathed in sharply and turned his back to the forest, the image of red eyes sharp in his mind. He'd tried to forget that nightmare, and he thought he'd succeeded, but there was something about the forest that brought the memories back. Seeking a distraction, he searched his pockets for Cinnamon's pokeball and let her loose. He relaxed at the sight of the growlithe, who sniffed the air curiously before tilting her head at Brian with a look of confusion. "Groo?"

"Huh? Oh, uh... I guess I put you away kind of fast," he said apologetically. "I should've warned you." He shrugged and moved to pet Cinnamon's head, but the growlithe danced away from his hand, barking as she went. Brian blinked, worried that she was angry at him, but the sour look on her face was given away by the enthusiastic wagging of her tail. Brian sighed and pulled his hand back. "All right, no petting. Are you still up for training, Cinnamon?"

Cinnamon barked once and turned to bound into a patch of tall grass, her tail waving above it like a flag. Brian blinked and smiled. He would take that as a yes. He ran after Cinnamon, wading into the tall grass. "Wait up! We're supposed to train together!"

This time, Brian thought, we'll do it right!

His mind rose from the fog of torpor, his thoughts whirling like a disorganized swarm. He reached out and pulled them together, sifting through until he found a thought as bright the sun. There was a human near the forest. His forest. No wonder it burned so.

He reached for its source, scouring the outer edges of his domain until he found what had woken him. There was a human at the border of his forest, and it had with it a pokemon. Though he could not hear, he was certain the human was shouting commands, and he watched as the beast lunged at a fearful caterpie.

He felt the small pokemon's pain lance through his thoughts, and in its wake it left burning indignation. None of the humans of the cities dared to pass through his forest, not anymore, but this one flaunted his authority for the sake of combat! He flung the full force of his anger at its mind to drive it away.

Yet it did not react, did not even turn its head. His assault parted around its mind like water around a stone. It surprised him, but he did not let this setback stop him. The human's mind might resist him at the edge of his influence, but the beast's mind was an open book. It would not be hard to manipulate.

He reached for its mind, and began to set his trap.

"Alright Cinnamon! Tackle it one more time!"

It was starting to get cold out, but for Brian it was more of a relief than a bother. For the past few hours he'd chased after Cinnamon, calling out commands and occasionally having to avoid attacks himself. The growlithe seemed to have a limitless amount of energy, and while she still ran from rattata she was fine with the other pokemon, and she'd taken to battle like a goldeen to water. While fire didn't seem to be on the menu for Cinnamon today, Brian felt confident that today's training had been a success.

Cinnamon darted forward, tackling the caterpie that was her target. Her strike hit true and the caterpie flew backwards, hitting the ground in a momentary faint. Brian punched the air, and went for an empty pokeball, but the caterpie was quick to get back to its feet and flee into the tall grass. Cinnamon looked back at Brian, looking ready to give chase, but Brian shook his head. "Let it go. I think we need to take a break."

Cinnamon's ears drooped, but she followed Brian as he left the tall grass and made himself a seat on a reasonably flat rock. Cinnamon lay down next to him and yawned, the energy she had been thrumming with suddenly absent. Brian smiled and rubbed her ears, then looked out towards where Viridian City lay on the horizon, lighting up the darkening sky.

"Tomorrow we'll train more," Brian said. "We'll get even better, and maybe we'll even get you to flame. Then nothing in the forest will be able to get us." He yawned and stretched, then brought his arms around him with a shiver. Now that he was sitting down, Brian could feel the chill in the air. "Come on Cinnamon, let's go back to the center... Cinnamon?"

Cinnamon stood, growling softly. Brian stood up and looked around worriedly. He couldn't see any pokemon, but there was always the chance that something was sneaking up on them. In this case though, he couldn't see anything that was threatening. He reached out towards Cinnamon. "Hey girl, what's wrong...?"

Cinnamon suddenly darted forward, barking angrily. Caught off guard, Brian watched as she ran, first towards the south, and then making an abrupt turn north - towards the forest. Brian paled, and without a second thought he chased after her. "Cinnamon! Come back! The forest's dangerous!" he cried, but the growlithe didn't seem to hear him. In fact, she put on a burst of speed as she reached the border of the forest, and with a powerful leap she vanished into the trees.

Brian stopped running before he entered the forest himself, his eyes wide with panic. He couldn't see far into the forest, but he could still hear Cinnamon's barking coming from within. He cupped his hands around his mouth and called again, but there was no sign of the growlithe returning - in fact, he could hear the barking growing quieter with distance. Brian felt conflicted - on one hand, he wasn't supposed to go into the forest. On the other hand, Cinnamon just had, and if he didn't do something, he might lose her.

It wasn't a hard decision.

"Here I come," Brian said quietly, and after a quick glance behind him he pushed past the grass and shrubbery and entered the darkness of the forest.

Brian had read a lot about the Viridian Forest. Though it was a massive forest, it was not particularly dangerous to younger trainers so long as they were careful. The paths that cut through were well maintained by rangers and by the sheer erosive force of the pokemon battles that tended to occur along the main roads, and even its infamous beedrill were reclusive enough to avoid the open paths.

The forest Brian was in now was a very different place. Away from the paths the forest grew thick and wild, blotting out the sky until there was barely enough light to see by. The ground too was precarious, covered by a slippery layer of moss and decaying leaves that made it even harder to see the roots and stones that seemed intent on tripping him. Even worse was the feeling that he was being watched. More than once Brian was sure he'd seen the flash of red eyes in the canopy.

"Cinnamon!" he shouted out for what felt like the millionth time, and once again it seemed to be absorbed by the trees. He had thought that the growlithe would at least leave a trail, like footprints or tufts of caught fur, but it seemed like it only worked that way on TV. Brian was rapidly coming to the realization that he was lost, and it was only the hope that Cinnamon would be just ahead that kept him from turning back. It was tempting, though, to at least stop and rest. It was getting darker by the second, to the point that Brian pulled out his flashlight, hoping that it would make it easier to find any trace of his pokemon's passing.

Brian was starting to lose hope when he heard a faint and familiar noise. He froze for a moment, straining to hear it more clearly. It sounded like barking, and he started to move in its direction. The louder and more clear the sound got, the faster he moved, until he was all but running in its direction, barely keeping his footing on the forest floor. He could see light ahead of him shining dimly between the tree trunks, and he shouted out. "Cinnamon, I'm coming!"

He broke free from the forest, stumbling to a halt in the midst of a clearing. The ground around him was beaten dirt rather than slippery undergrowth, and in front him a single, massive tree dominated the clearing. The sky had turned a deep blue, and if he looked up he would've seen that the first stars were starting to show. Brian didn't look at the sky, though. His attention was focused on the tree, and at the pokemon barking below it.

"Cinnamon!"

The growlithe turned her head towards Brian, blinking several times before breaking into a run herself. Brian knelt down to catch Cinnamon as she ran into his arms, enthusiastically licking every bare patch of skin she could get to. "I finally found you," Brian said, hugging her tightly before gently pushing her away. He was glad that Cinnamon was safe, but he couldn't help but frown a little at his pokemon. "Why did you run off like that? I was really worried," he said as sternly as he could. Cinnamon drooped a little, looking guilty.

'She came because I called her.'

It wasn't a voice that Brian heard. It was more like a thought in his head, but one that clashed with his own internal monologue. Cinnamon seemed to hear it too, and she started to growl, looking directly at the lone tree in the middle of the clearing. Its branches waved and rustled in the wind, and Brian felt drawn to it. He walked closer until he could see the individual leaves, turned his flashlight upwards, and looked directly into a pair of glowing red eyes.

He barely had time to scream as something dropped from the tree, scattering leaves and branches and knocking Brian backwards. He fell on his back and lay there, momentarily stunned, as the sound of humming and Cinnamon's barking began to fill his ears. Finally he forced himself to a sitting position, and saw just what had knocked him over.

It was a butterfree, but it was nearly as large as he was if not bigger. It was covered with scars and old wounds, and its tattered wings hung uselessly at its sides. It managed to float anyway, surrounded by a pale purple glow that Brian recognized as psychic energy. It lifted its head, fixing its blank red eyes on him.

Stupid boy. They told you not to enter the forest, came the thought-voice again, and Brian knew it was the voice of the monstrous butterfree before him. He scrambled to his feet and backed away, mind reeling at the simple fact that such a massive butterfree could exist. "W-what are you?"

The butterfree floated higher and spread its tattered wings, revealing a twisted web of patterns that resembled a pair of staring eyes. 'I am Goliath, and I am the lord of this forest,' the butterfree declared. It looked down on Brian, eyes whirling red and purple. 'You, Brian, have encroached upon my domain.'

"How..."

'How do I know your name?' Goliath made a strange rattling noise, and looked towards Cinnamon. His eyes flashed, and the growlithe yelped as she was lifted into the air by psychic energy. 'I learned many things from your... pet. She may be loyal, but her mind is weak. It was easy to ply your name from her thoughts. There was not much else in there.' He tossed Cinnamon roughly aside, and turned his gaze to Brian. 'You, though...'

Brian didn't have a chance to react as Goliath caught him in his psychic grasp, lifting him into the air and towards his face. He struggled in midair, trying to look anywhere but the butterfree's unblinking red eyes. They seemed to glow with an unnatural energy entirely separate from the psychic glow. "Let me go!" he said, struggling uselessly in midair.

Goliath seemed to growl, his thought-voice hot with anger. 'You, Brian, are a scared little boy. Yet you still resist,' he said, tightening his psychic power until Brian could hardly breath or do anything other than stare into the butterfree's eyes. 'I do not know what gives your thoughts such strength, but it can not protect you forever...'

While Brian struggled against Goliath's grasp, Cinnamon rose to her feet, shaking her head to clear her mind. She looked up, first at the massive butterfree, and then at Brian. Her trainer was in danger, and to protect him she did what came naturally: she lunged forward and bit down on one of Goliath's dangling feet.

"FRIIII!" Goliath screamed and dropped Brian on the ground. He turned his attention to the growlithe latched onto his foot, barely holding himself in the air as he tried to pry her off. 'You stupid beast! You will let go!' With one last push he finally ripped Cinnamon loose, and threw her to the ground next to Brian. He glowed angry red as he lifted himself into the air, spreading his wings wide. 'I will not accept such insubordination. I will destroy you both!'

Brian stared upwards, his mind blank with fear as Goliath prepared his attack. Cinnamon, however, had other plans. She got to her feet and looked directly up at the butterfree, and with a confidant howl she let loose a stream of embers that struck him right in the chest.

Goliath cried out in pain, his collected energy flickering out. He dropped from the sky, his wings flapping uselessly, and hit the ground with a painful sounding crack. For a moment it looked like he had fainted, but as Brian approached Goliath's eyes flared to life. He jerked upwards into the air - 'I will-' dropped back down '- not fall -' and dragged himself towards him. '...to you!'

Brian didn't know why his first reaction was to reach for an empty pokeball, but once he had it in his hand he knew exactly what to do. With a wordless shout he lobbed it forwards, and watched as it sailed through the air. It struck Goliath on the head, absorbed him in a flash of red light, and dropped to the forest floor. As soon as it hit the ground it wobbled once, twice, three times... and with a final ding it lay still.

Brian approached the pokeball and stared down at it. He bent over and gingerly picked it up, expecting it to burst open at any second, but it didn't even twitch in his hand. He quietly put it in his backpack, and walked over to Cinnamon. She didn't have any external injuries, but she wasn't as energetic as she normally was. Brian wasn't feeling too energetic either, but he at least gave her a solid pat on the head. "...thank you, Cinnamon. Good girl."

Cinnamon thumped her tail a few times.

Brian's head still felt foggy as he looked around the forest. It was quite dark now, and the moon rose bright and round above the clearing, illuminating it with a pale light. There was no way he would make it back to Viridian City by morning... and even if he did, he'd be right back where he started, unable to move ahead because the forest was too dangerous. He laughed weakly at the thought. There couldn't be anything in the forest more dangerous than that. "I'm so tired... Cinnamon, do you think we could camp out here?" He looked down at her, and the growlithe yawned in response. Brian could see little flecks of fire in the back of her throat.

"I guess so." He walked over to the tree and dropped his backpack beside it. It didn't take long for him to lay out his sleeping bag, and soon as he had zipped in Cinnamon curled up beside him, her body as warm as any fire. Brian looked up at the branches, watching as caterpie went about their business in the branches, then rolled over and went to sleep.

Author's Notes: Wow, this chapter took a while to get out. And what's with the shoving all the italics together, FFNet? It's obnoxious.

So originally Goliath was supposed to be a beedrill. Why change him to a butterfree? Well first of all, everyone does evil beedrill. Second, beedrill aren't particularly known for their psychic abilities, but butterfree at least have a few psychic moves. Third, I really liked the idea of trying to make a butterfree scary, or at least unnerving.

Thanks for reading!